MILITARY NEWS: TRAINING OF MILITARY FACULTY OFFICERS, BY COLONEL S. KNYAZEV

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80T00246A029400840001-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 9
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 5, 2012
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: April 2, 1962
• Content Type: MEMO

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3
Next 2 Page(s) In Document Denied
Iq
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3 HUM
Training of Military Faculty Officers
by
Colonel S. Knyazev
(A reply to an article published in No. 30 of the Collection)
Articles on the command training (komandirskaya podgotovka)
of?officers from military faculties are seldom published in our press.
Therefore, we, officers of the department of higher educational
institutions (otdel vuzov- vuz- vyssheye uchebnoye zavedeniye),were
particularly interested in the article by Colonel V. Fedorov.
It is true that the author has stated the primary problems
somewhat sketchily, and moreover, we cannot agree With some, of his
opinions. First of all, he is wrong in his assertion that the
officers and generals from military faculties of higher educational
institutions are isolated from army life and are badly provided with
military literature. During the last two years, in the Carpathian
Military District, more than half the officers and generals from
military faculties have been replaced by young officers with higher
military education who have come directly from the troops. They are
coping successfully with the great tasks given them and are skilfully
imparting.military knowledge to their students, the future reserve
officers.,
Of course, the young instructors on military faculties need
assistance in mastering teaching methods. It is just to this that
the heads of faculties and the departments of higher educational
institutions in military districts should pay the most attention when
planning command and methods training, especially in the case of
seven-to ten-day refresher courses (sbor).
As far as literature is concerned, the officers and generals
employed at military faculties suffer from no lack. of it. Through
the directorates of the Ministry of Defense and military district
headquarters they, just as all other army units, are provided with a
sufficient quantity of...regulations, manuals, courses in marksmanship,
50X1-HUM
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3 HUM
textbooks,. and visual aids. Each military faculty subscribes to the
necessary military, technical, and special journals.
Officers at the faculties systematically attend command exercises,
visit units during refresher training courses, and while the students
do their training, participate in command staff and tactical exercises.
For example, in February 1960 seven-day district refresher courses
were held for all officers employed on military faculties. All
military faculties held four-or five-day refresher courses at the
end of the spring semester and before the start of the new academic
year. During the year more than a third of the officers participated
in command staff exercises and exercises with troops and a
considerable number attended special refresher courses conducted by
central and district directorates.
The military faculties at higher educational institutions are
fully provided with the necessary training weapons and combat and
transport equipment. This allows all exercises with students on
tactics, special tactics, fire and drill training and other subjects
to be conducted under conditions in the'f ield approximating those in combat.
Officers of military faculties are becoming less and less cutoff
from the soldier's life every year.
Colonel V. Fedorov considers that the most suitable time for
district refresher courses for officers and generals employed at
military faculties is when the students are on winter vacation. In
our opinion, the winter vacation is not only a suitable but the only
possible time for holding district refresher courses because for the
whole of the remaining time the officers and the generals are busy
teaching, and during the summer vacation they are, together with
students, in camp for practical training and special practice with
the troops.
It should be borne in mind, however, that the winter vacation
does not fall at the same time in all the higher educational
institutions. Therefore, we inquire beforehand at the higher
educational institutions when their vacation begins and arrange the
dates for the district refresher courses to ensure a 100 percent
attendance of officers and generals.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3
The author of the article under discussion has shown too
sketchily-the organization and-conduct of district refresher courses
for officers-and, generals from-military faculties. He deals in a
particularly weak manner with such an important question as the training
of the intructors in teaching methods.
In this connection we should like to discuss in some detail the
experiences with refresher courses for officers and generals from
military faculties which were conducted by the Carpathian Military
District in February 1960.
The refresher courses were planned for the first week in
February and by the 15th of December, the commander of the troops for
the military district had already confirmed the following allocation
of hours and subjects for the refresher courses.
Allocation of Hours
A
rrangements made
Total
Practical
Hours
Exercises
Msrxist-Leninist Training
Training in 'T'actics and
Special Tactics
23
13
Methods Training
10
10
Drill Instruction
2
2
Report on the Results of
Students' Training for
the First Semester,
Statements by Refresher
Course Students, Instruc-
tions from the Commander
TOTALS
~+6
21 1 25
- Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246A029400840001-3 HUM
Subjects for the Refresher Courses
MARXIST-LENINIST TRAINING
International Position of the Soviet Union (lecture) 2 hrs
The Results of the Work of the December Plenum of
the Central Committee of the Soviet union (lecture) - 2 hrs
The Influence of Scientific and Technical Progress
on the Development of Combat Equipment and Methods of
Armed Combat (lecture) - 2 hrs
TRAINING IN TACTICS AND SPECIAL TACTICS
(for all participants in the refresher course)
Seminar on the New Combat and Field Manual - 3 hrs
A Precipitate Attack on a Prepared Enemy Defense
Position by a Motorized Rifle Division (lecture) - 2 hrs
The Use of Atomic Weapons and Artillery during a
Precipitate Attack on a Prepared Enemy Defense Position
by a Motorized Rifle Division (lecture) - 2 hrs
Engineer Support during an Attack by a Motorized
Rifle Division (lecture) - 1 hr
Supply of Technical Equipment for an Attack by a
Motorized Rifle Division (lecture) - 2 hrs
Group map exercise on the Subject of "A Precipi-.
tate Attack on a Prepared Enemy Defense Position by a
Motorized Rifle Division" (for all participants in the
course except officers of the medical service) -13 hrs
Group map exercise on the subject "Medical
Support in a Precipitate Attack on a Prepared Enemy
Defense Position by a Motorized Rifle Division"
(practical exercise for officers of the medical service) -13 hrs
DRILL INSTRUCTION
(for all participants in the refresher course)
Practical exercise on"the subject "Drill Manual
and Marching with Arms"
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246A029400840001-3
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246A029400840001-3
-HUM
METHODS TRAINING
For lecturers on combined-arms subjects: an open
exercise (otkrytoye zanyatiye) on the subject of
"Control of a Rifle Platoon during an Attack"
A demonstration(pokaznoye zanyatiye) of
"Fire Control in a Rifle Platoon in Defense"
For artillery officers: a. demonstration
''A Command Platoon of an Artillery Battery in an
Attack"
- 5 hrs
- 5 hrs
-4hrs
Tactical exercise of an artillery division with
combat firing by day and by night on the subject of
"Ways and Methods of Work to Ensure a Saving of
Time and an Increase in Accuracy of. Fire"
-6hrs
For officers of the medical service the
following lectures:
"Modern Problems of Organization and Tactics
in Medical Support for the Troops'! -2hrs
"Organization and Extent of Surgical Aid at the
Stages of Medical Evacuation"
- 2 hrs
"The Sorting of Casualties.at the Stages of
Medical Evacuation"
- 2 hrs
"Current Informs tion on Enemy preparation
for Bacteriological Warfare and the Organization
of Antibacteriological Protection of Troops and
the local Population"
"Provision of Medical and Evacuation Services
for Troops in an Area Hit by a Chemical Weapon"
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246A029400840001-3
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3 -
OUA i -HUM
The responsibility for preparing and conducting all exercises
was given to the appropriate commanding officers of arms of.-, ,
troops and commanding officers of departments and directorates of
the district. Control over the preparation of teaching materials,
open exercises, and demonstrations was exercised by the assistant
commander of troops for higher educational institutions in the
district.
The organizational instructions for support of the courses
provided for the allocation of vehicles, motor transportation
potential and ammunition, and also of financial means (taking into
account the printing of the training and introductory end of the starting situation on topographical maps)location~of the
course, the number of study groups, mass information measures,
feeding arrangements, and
All training materials were prepared 7 to 10 days before the
beginning of the courses. The leaders of tactical training groups
rehearsed 4 or 5 days before the courses.
The responsibility for organizing and conducting the course
was placed on the assistant commander of troops for higher educational
institutions in the district.
From the allocation of hours and the selection of subjects, as
shown above, it will be seen that more than half of the training time
was allotted to practical exercises. Out of the 25 to 30 hours of
practical exercises, 10 hours were devoted to training the instructors
in methods.
I should like to say a few words about open exercises and
demonstrations. In the 1958 courses, exercises on the subject of
"A Rifle Platoon in the Attack" were conducted with the participation
of a Platoon of cadets of the Military Academy. well prepared and conducted, but it was not typicaleof exercises with
students of higher educational institutions. We recognized this defect
and since 1959 have been conducting open exercises and demonstrations
with the participation of groups of such students. Judging by the
reaction of the majority of generals and officers from military
faculties, these exercises render them considerable assistance with
training methods. .
50X1-HUM
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3
 Z^Y"-HUM
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246A029400840001-3
To judge from Colonel V. Fedorov's article, a considerable defect in
the course at the Voronezh Jilita
generals and officers from militaDistrict is that not all the
drill instruction. It should~be borne in mindathat included
training
of students should not be taught by combined-arms officers alone.
Artillery, signal, and engineer officers, as well as officers of the
rear and 'medical services, should be able to conduct drill instruction.
Each instructor from a military faculty is assigned
groups at different levels which he must instruct duing teewholetudy
period in one principal subject and two or three related to it. The
transfer of subjects and study groups from one instructor to another
is not allowed, as a rule. Therefore, courses for all the officers
from military faculties should include demonstrations and open
exercises in fire and drill training. In exercises for arms of troops
and services, it is desirable to study more difficult problems on certain subjects in officers re only special,
program.
Colonel V. Fedorov writes that at Voronezh, a group composed of
officers from the military faculty is studying Marxist-Leninist training
at the Officers' Club. In other garrisons the officers hear lectures
at regional military commissariats (oblvoenkomat) and political
departments of special units of the garrisons, but seminars are held
in the military faculties under the
In our opinion, this is not the only guidance of the heads of faculties.
it oof ssiblet-Leninist
training for officers from military faculties. Is i form
ele uhat
all the officers from military faculties in the garrison are g
only one branch of Marxist-Leninist science, say, thehistory sof the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union, political economy
Besides, how can the head of the faculty conduct a seminar when thehy?
officers are studying different branches of Marxist-Leninist science?
With us, Marxist-Leninist training in each faculty is done in
accordance with its own plan which is connected with the study plan
of the higher educational institution. As is well known,
economy, history of the CPSU, and philosophy are studied byoalllthe
instructors at civilian higher educational institutions. That is why
we recommended that officers from military faculties should study
directly at the higher educational institutions.
is a quite acceptable form of Marxist-Leninist ctly aWe nk t the hithat
from military faculties and one, moreover, which is more reliable
from the viewpoint of control.
-I---1 I
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246A029400840001-3
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3
It is another matter when the officers are studying problems
of military science m. In
such cases it is more
in the classic works of Marxism-Leninis desirable that studies and seminars be held
in district officers' clubs, regional milita
political departments of special units of rr con, andiats,
military faculties of higher and at the
gher educational institutions.
In order that officers from military faculties may keep abreast
of the developments in tactics, weapons, and combat equipment, all
faculties in the Carpathian Military District are attached to
military units and military training institutions. ere the off
get acquainted with the latest types of armament, attend lecturescers
which are part of commanders' training, and are present at critiques
on various tactical and command staff exercises.
At the same time the officers from military faculties take an
active part in the work of local branches of the Society for the
Dissemination of Political and Scientific Knowledge
science societies, and they recount their experiencesn nitrainingry
and educating students on the pages of the military press. A number
of officers from the faculties have produced scholar
works which
have been published by the Military Publishing House.
50X1-HUM
-1 1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/05: CIA-RDP80T00246AO29400840001-3